Sunderland to Reach 'Agreement Soon' For Promising Fiorentina Starlet In Summer Transfer Window

Young defender Eddy Kouadio has been a mainstay for Fiorentina's under 20s side this season, making 32 appearances across both league and cup competitions. However, the 18-year-old is yet to feature for the Serie A side's first team this campaign. Despite this, he appears to have caught the eye of Sunderland sporting director Kristjaan Speakman and his recruitment team.

Sunderland sporting director Kristjaan Speakman | IMAGO

Africa Foot reports that the Black Cats have been monitoring Kouadio for some time, and are in talks with Fiorentina in an attempt to 'seal the deal' before the end of the current season. As it stands, Sunderland are yet to make a formal offer for the youngster but they remain in talks in order to reach an agreement with the Italian side as soon as possible.

The report states that the Black Cats' intend to offer a five-year-deal to the young Italian defender, which could appeal to Kouadio given his struggle for first team minutes throughout this campaign. There is no mention from Africa Foot however, of any sort of fee that Fiorentina would be willing to accept or that Regis Le Bris' side would be willing to offer.

Kouadio can play at both centre-back and right-back, so he could provide some good cover and competition for the Black Cats, especially at right-back given the injury woes of Niall Huggins and the reliance on Trai Hume this season. However, his complete lack of first team experience would mean that he may take a little while to get up to speed with the physical demands of the English game and fans would likely have to be patient with the youngster.

There have been no reports as yet from either English or Italian media regarding the transfer, however if it is as advanced as Africa Foot suggests, we may see reports emerging in the coming weeks.